For years, the Hamline Midway Coalition (HMC) has served as a pillar for the Hamline-Midway community, taking on projects that serve the greater good and improve life for those living in the area. On Thursday, Nov. 21, HMC held its annual meeting alongside the Midway Investment Cooperative (MIC) in Hamline’s Klas Center. The room was full of both board members and residents of the community. The event is held once a year to celebrate work done by HMC throughout the year and to preview goals for the upcoming year. This year the meeting was set with a special guest speaker, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter. The meeting allows community members to meet with those in their neighborhood and learn how to improve their community.
“The general mission of the Hamline Midway Coalition is just improving life for that work, study and live in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood,” HMC board member and sophomore Kaitlynn Fuller said.
The importance of this mission is reflected in HMC’s commitment to bettering the neighborhood both physically and socially, with its environmental agency working to create pollinator-friendly gardens and its committee dedicated to building community engagement. This committee hosts community events meant to connect the entire neighborhood in safe and often free ways. As people settled into their seats, HMC president Cole Hanson began speaking alongside Executive Director Jenne Nelson about the spirit of the community.
“We, unlike any other neighborhood in St. Paul, are taking the challenges our neighborhood is providing us and the world is thrusting upon us,” Hanson said.
Many community challenges must be faced head on and the HMC recognizes and addresses these issues with as much vigor as possible. After hearing from each committee encompassed in HMC, Carter took the microphone to address the crowd.
“There are really two ways to respond to challenge. We can let challenge split us apart, we could let challenge make us lose our faith in the human spirit,” Carter said, “And on a really localized level, we could let the challenge make us go out the back door.”
This metaphor was used to connect with the community members gathered to celebrate their neighborhood and uplift their community. Carter encouraged community members to continue to work through the challenges presented in the neighborhood. As Carter’s speech concluded, he was met with a large round of applause and cheers as he stepped aside to allow MIC President Phaedre Sanders and Vice President Pete McCauley to speak. They spoke about property rights within the community and offered a crash course on becoming a member of their organization. With this, the speaking concluded and there was a half hour to mingle with the members of both organizations and Mayor Carter. The meeting had been an all around success with the community being engaged and excited for the upcoming year’s projects.
Attendees of the event commented on the upbeat atmosphere and how refreshing it was to see elected officials speak about localized communities. This highlighted the event’s significance both for community leaders and members of the community. Overall, the meeting was a marker of the Hamline-Midway’s sense of community and willingness to face challenges head on with passionate determination to accomplish their mission of improving the Hamline-Midway neighborhood.